Monthly Archives: August 2009

My Namesake

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J. Tillman – “First Born”

Meet what very well might be the first race horse in history named after a Twitter handle, Indy Rocker Girl. Those are my nieces and nephew checking out the foal their Grandpa named in my honor (endearingly botched in only the way my Dad could manage.) I got this photo in my inbox just before heading out to see J. Tillman last night at Cafe du Nord and the combination of the two elements really made me homesick.

I think it was the pedal guitar that got me. It does every time. Listening to the talented Mr. Tillman’s beautifully plucked guitar and weeping sounds of the pedal steel guitar, it finally hit me why I’m such a sucker for it. It’s home. As much as I grew up on the alternative sounds of WOXY, so I did country and bluegrass music in my Dad’s pick up truck. Regular pilgrimages across the border to the Kentucky Bluegrass Festival made me a lifelong fan of the banjo, pedal guitar and heartfelt lyrics.

J. Tillman and his band are just that – and more. Their music is honest and real. In a time when so much indie music seems contrived and trite, it’s a refreshing respite. I had such a feeling of contentment after that show. My chicken soup for the soul, I guess. If only I could have had a patch of real bluegrass to sink my bare feet into….

Rock Make Music & Art Fest – Sunday in SF!

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The folks over at The Bay Bridged are hosting the second annual Rock Make Music and Art Festival. tomorrow on Treat Avenue between 17th Street and 18th Street in the Mission District. Locals, be sure and stop by for a great afternoon of local art and music. And don’t miss smokin’ hot local band, The Ferocious Few – the minutemen of San Francisco’s lo-fi garage rock scene.

11:00am – The Psychotherapists
11:20 – Secret Cat
11:40 – The She’s
12:00pm – Photons
12:30 – Boneless Children Foundation
1:00 – The Ferocious Few
1:30 – The Dont’s
2:00 – Two Sheds
2:30 – Silian Rail
3:00 – Odawas
3:30 – Magic Bullets
4:00 – Geographer
4:30 – Low Red Land
5:00 – Music For Animals
5:30 – Tartufi

Hilarious But True: Defining Indie Music Fans

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@epicureanzealot sent me the link to this post on Cracked.com and, well, I cracked up.  In addition to this hilarious decision flow chart for whether or not a band is worthy of indie fan-dom, they summed up the indie music scene and it’s followers like this:

  1. “Indie music” is a term most commonly associated with unsigned or minor label bands that have a folk/alt/rock/electronic sound.
  2. In addition to liking music that nobody else does, the one thing that unites the indie scene is a willingness to wear clothes nobody else would be caught dead in.
  3. The favored environment for indie music culture is festivals; however it can be found in clubs, thrift stores and Urban Outfitters.

Stuck In My Head: She Keeps Bees, “My Last Nerve”

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She Keeps Bees, “My Last Nerve”

“…I’m your punisher/ I’ve got nerve. I’ve got some nerve, don’t I? “

I’m still obsessing over this album and particularly this song. I just love how the imagery of this portrait by Richard Avedon, called The Beekeeper (one of my favorites in the Avedon exhibit happening currently at SF MOMA – a must see!), fits so well with with everything about this post. I’m feeling very satisfied and complete right now. Get the album “Nests” by She Keeps Bees and you might too.

Cool Tech: iLike’s Local Concert iPhone App

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Ohhh, here’s a new iPhone app that made me very happy.  Meet Local Concert from iLike which allows you to keep tabs on your local music scene and when your favorite artists are coming to town. The application tracks all of your favorite artists (culled from your iPhone or iTouch library), alerts you when they’re coming to town, enables you to buy tickets, listen to their music and share concert alert news with friends – all from your iPhone.

The other cool feature is that it allows you to track the concert calendars of your favorite local venues. This is particularly great for me because sometimes my music library doesn’t always reflect all the artists I might want to see. I can envision the local venues tab of the app becoming a critical tool for my SXSW planning too.

Grab the free app here.

Video: The Dodos – “Fools” (Live at The Mural)

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A most excellent video of local heros, The Dodos, performing “Fools” at a recent KEXP sponsored show. It gives you great insight into the layers and complexities of their music. The Dodos are playing a special Outside Lands night show at The Rickshaw Stop on August 26. If you don’t have your tickets, start scalping. It’s already sold out!

Will There Be A Radiohead EP Released Today?

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Radiohead, “These Are My Twisted Words”

The Internet is ablaze with theories about the leaked Radiohead track last week, “These Are My Twisted Words.” And one such theory that’s been speculated on a Radiohead fan site, At Ease, is that “Twisted Words” is from a new Radiohead EP called Wall of Ice that will hit the internet hard today. According to the site, in the source files of the the leaked track last week, the title ‘Wall Of Ice’ was found twice as well as a release date of August 17, 2009.

Why is everyone so optimistic about this theory?

  1. If you go to wallofice.com you get redirected to a Radiohead online store.
  2. In the recent Believer interview, Yorke alluded to having something up his sleeve by saying: “We’ve got this great idea for putting things out but I can’t tell you what it is, because someone will rip it off.”
  3. The ‘Wall of Ice’ reference of the supposed EP title is believed to originate from an anti-industry cartoon about digital rights management (pictured above).
  4. Capitol Records is slated to release deluxe reissues of Kid A, Amnesica and Hail to the Theif on August 25. The band had no input into this.

Given that Radiohead has vocally expressed disdain for the music industry and it’s inner workings on many occasion, this is all starting to sound like a very viable ‘fuck you’ to the system.  Whether it’s true or not, we will shall soon find out. Good god do I have respect for this band.  Not only are they musical geniuses, they’re marketing geniuses too.  And right now they have the entire world eating out of their hands.